Philadelphia Eagles: The curious case of Jake Elliott

Arguably the most debated player on the Philadelphia Eagles’ roster, is Jake Elliott the second coming of David Akers, or just another flash in the pan?

Is there a player on the Philadelphia Eagles roster more polarizing than Jake Elliott?

Serious, some fans have called the 22-year-old placekicker a bum for missing too many extra pointers, whereas others have anointed former fifth-round pick from Memphis the second coming of David Akers, and a potential franchise-caliber kicker.

But how could this be?

While Elliott has faced his fair share of adversity in 2017, whether it be being cut from the Cincinnati Bengals as they trimmed their roster down to 53, or missing a pair of point-after attempts in the Eagles’ October 29th trouncing of the San Francisco 49ers there has to be some sort of consensus as to Elliott’s potential with the team, and his eventual role once injured incumbent Caleb Sturgis returns in 2018, right?

If only it was that easy.

On paper, Elliott is the kind of kicker every team would like to have on their roster, young and fearless with a cannon for a leg. Currently in the middle of a two year, $1.02 million deal, keeping Elliott on the roster going into the 2018 season should be a total no-brainer.

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But then he’ll miss an extra point attempt like he did in the Eagles 15-10 playoff victory over the Atlanta Falcons, a game in which he also kicked three field goals, and Twitter will once again light up with calls to ship the former Bengel back to Ohio.

It’s like he just can’t win in some people eyes.

In only 16 games with the Eagles, 15 in the regular season and the team’s first playoff game, Elliott has scored an incredible 117 points, almost twice as many as the team’s next highest scorer, Alshon Jeffery, and good for the 14th post of any player in the league, and the second most by any rookie. An incredible feat when you consider Elliott was unemployed Week 1. And that’s not the only interesting thing to be derived from Elliott’s statistical performance in 2017.

Though Elliott did finish the season 22nd in the league in extra point efficiency, having only made 39-42 in the regular season, and 0-1 in the postseason, he also completed 26-31 field goal attempts including five from 50 plus, including the longest kick by a rookie in Eagles history, and the longest kick by a rookie in playoff history. Without Elliott’s steady leg and perfect 3-3 field goal attempts in the Eagles’ playoff victory over the Falcons, the team very well may have watched their playoff aspirations come to a premature end.

For better or worse, the Eagles season could very well fall on Jake Elliott’s diminutive shoulders, especially with Nick Foles lined up under center. With the Eagles’ days of blowing out opposing teams by 20+ points now a distant memory, Elliott could be the difference between a trip to Minnesota, and another offseason of what-ifs.

But regardless of how the 2017 NFL season ends up, the Eagles will have a serious decision on their hands in a few short months.

While Elliott has been a revelation in his first season with the team, at least most of the time, the Eagles have had a number of prestigious kickers put up gaudy numbers in the City of Brotherly Love for a season or two, only to have their careers burn out in hilarious fashion.

Cough cough Alex Henery.

But fear not Eagles fans, much like at the quarterback position, our birds may actually have one of the best kicking situations in the entire league.

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Between Elliott, the team’s flashy, record-setting wunderkind, and Sturgis, the wily, reliable vet, the Eagles could have a front row seat for one of the most exciting kicking competitions in recent memory, and will likely be able to flip the “looser” of their competition to a kicker starved team, like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, or Los Angeles Chargers for a much appreciated late round draft pick. A major win for all parties involved.

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